A. In the Spring of last year, I preached a series on hope in the promises of God.
1. One of God’s promises that I covered in that series is: we have a helper who empowers us – the Holy Spirit.
2. I want to open this sermon with the same story I opened that sermon with because I like it and it makes me laugh.
B. The Apostles’ Creed is an early statement of Christian belief that has been embraced by many Christians over the years.
1. There is a story told about a children’s catechism class that was learning the Apostles Creed.
2. Each child in the class had been assigned a sentence from the creed to recite and one day the class was going through the recitation of the creed with each child saying their part.
3. The first one said, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.”
4. The second child said, “I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.”
5. Then, after a number of other children followed with their additional statements about Jesus (His virgin birth, death and resurrection), there was an awkward silence.
6. Everyone waited for the next line of the creed to be recited: “I believe in the Holy Spirit.”
7. Finally, one of the children said, “Teacher, the boy who believes in the Holy Spirit isn’t here.”
C. I hope that everyone who is here today and everyone who is watching at home are people who believe in the Holy Spirit. Amen!
1. As disciples of Jesus Christ, we believe that there is one God in three persons– the Father Almighty, Jesus Christ, His only Son, and the Holy Spirit.
2. And today, as we return to our series on discipleship, I want us to focus on this important essential of discipleship: disciples of Jesus are empowered by the Holy Spirit.
D. Before we focus in on the essential role of the Holy Spirit in the life of a disciple, let’s review.
1. In our series on discipleship, we have covered lots of the basics of discipleship, including:
a. The Call: A disciple of Jesus is someone who is following Jesus, being changed by Jesus, and is committed to the mission of Jesus.
b. The Cost: The cost of discipleship is everything we are and everything we have.
c. The Command: The command of discipleship is to make disciples who make disciples.
2. Next in our series, we explored the stages of discipleship that starts with a person being spiritually dead, then moves them through being an infant, child, young adult, and finally a spiritual parent.
3. Then we discussed the completeness of discipleship showing that our relationship with God must impact all the spheres of our lives: our relationships with God, the church, our family, and the world.
4. Since then, we have been talking about the essentials of discipleship and have focused on the place of love, Jesus, the Bible, and prayer in the life of a disciple of Jesus.
E. Today, we add the essential of the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of a disciple.
1. The Holy Spirit is sometimes called the neglected person of the Trinity – Francis Chan titled his book on the Holy Spirit - “The Forgotten God.”
2. But the Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit isn’t just an add-on to the Christian life, rather the Holy Spirit is essential.
3. Without the Holy Spirit, the Christian life is impossible.
4. Unless the Holy Spirit is present and doing His work, nobody can be born again or grow in Christlikeness.
5. Without the work of the Holy Spirit, we cannot accomplish the mission of Jesus.
6. Attempting to live the Christian life without the supernatural assistance of the Holy Spirit, is like trying to begin a cross-country road trip without any gasoline in the tank.
F. One of the important things we need to understand about the way the Holy Spirit works, is that He works in the background, and doesn’t seek to bring attention to Himself.
1. Jesus explained this to His disciples when He said: 12 “I still have many things to tell you, but you can’t bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come. 14 He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.” (Jn. 16:12-14).
2. In a book called Your Father Loves You, James Packer compares the work of the Holy Spirit to a floodlight illuminating the exterior of a building.
a. If it’s done right, the floodlight calls no attention to itself and you might not even be aware of the source of the light.
b. Rather the floodlight just calls attention to the building it illuminates.
3. That’s the way the Holy Spirit works – He doesn’t call attention to Himself, but rather He seeks to illuminate Jesus, so that we can see Jesus and understand Jesus, and follow Him better.
4. And more than just pointing us to Jesus, the Holy Spirit helps us to become more like Jesus, and I want to explore further how the Holy Spirit does that as the sermon continues.
G. But, before we get into how the Holy Spirit works in us, I want to remind us of how the Holy Spirit enters our lives.
1. The Holy Spirit comes to live in us at the time of our conversion to Christ.
2. The apostle Peter declared, “Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).
3. Peter and the apostles also said, “We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him” (Acts 5:32).
4. The apostle Paul explained about the Holy Spirit’s role in Titus 3 when he wrote: 4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for mankind appeared, 5 he saved us—not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy—through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. 6 He poured out his Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we may become heirs with the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:4-7).
a. Isn’t that beautiful and wonderful!
b. The Holy Spirit brings regeneration (rebirth) and renewal through the washing of baptism and God pours out His spirit abundantly – not sparingly!
5. How wonderful to know that when we professed our faith in Christ and were buried with Christ in baptism, we received the gift of the Holy Spirit who now dwells in us and gives us life.
6. Paul wrote: 10 Now if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then he who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through his Spirit who lives in you (Romans 8:10-11).
7. So there is no doubt that the Holy Spirit is living in us and is giving us spiritual life.
H. Now let’s spend a few minutes exploring how the Holy Spirit is working in our lives to help us to live as disciples of Christ.
1. First of all, we must understand that the Holy Spirit helps us to overcome the flesh and to live in obedience to God.
2. We read from Romans 8 just a minute ago about the Spirit living in us and giving us life, but look at what Paul says about the Spirit in the next few verses: 12 So then, brothers and sisters, we are not obligated to the flesh to live according to the flesh, 13 because if you live according to the flesh, you are going to die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live (Romans 8:12-13).
3. The pull of the flesh can be very strong, but the pull of the Spirit is even stronger.
4. The good news for us is that there isn’t any temptation we face that we can’t overcome by the power of God’s Spirit in us.
5. Isn’t that what Paul meant when he wrote 1 Corinthians 10:13: No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to bear it.
a. The way out is through the leading and empowering of the Holy Spirit.
6. In Ephesians 3:16, Paul prayed that all of us would “be strengthened with power in your inner being through his Spirit.”
7. This doesn’t mean that any of this is automatic or easy, but if we cooperate with the Holy Spirit and depend on the Holy Spirit, we can overcome the flesh and live in obedience to the Lord.
I. Second, we must understand that the Holy Spirit helps us to become more like Jesus.
1. The Holy Spirit is the ultimate change agent.
2. The process of becoming like Jesus is called sanctification.
3. This metamorphosis comes in at least two ways, and these two ways are not easy or instantaneous, they are a process.
J. The first of those ways involves a disciplined and habitual approach to walking in the Spirit.
1. the disciplined and habitual approach to walking in the Spirit includes the historic spiritual practices of things like: prayer, Scripture reading, fasting, worship and service.
2. These spiritual practices shape our inner life as intentional habits and they orient our lives toward spiritual things.
3. By practicing these disciplines, we open ourselves up to the Holy Spirit’s transformative power.
4. In 1 Timothy 4:7-8, Paul encouraged Timothy to: Train yourself in godliness. For the training of the body has limited benefit, but godliness is beneficial in every way, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.
a. Our training in godliness comes through spiritual discipline and obedience to God’s Word.
5. Paul explained about the process of spiritual transformation when he wrote these words to the Corinthians: 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit (2 Cor. 3:17-18).
a. We notice in those verses the important role of the Spirit in that transformation process.
b. As we walk in the Spirit and look into the Word of God, we are changed.
6. And in Galatians 5, Paul explains that the fruit of the Spirit (in other words, the product of the Spirit, or the influence of the Spirit) creates the character of Jesus: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
7. I’ve always enjoyed explaining to people who are studying to become a Christian, that if they could see 10 years into the future and see how much they will have grown and transformed into the character of Christ, then they would like what they see.
8. The long-term result of walking in the Spirit and cooperating with the Spirit is dramatic character transformation.
9. And so, the first way the Spirit helps us become like Jesus is through a disciplined approach to walking in the Spirit.
K. The second way that the Holy Spirit helps us to become like Jesus is through suffering.
1. James wrote: 2 Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing (James 1:2-4).
a. It takes a spiritual perspective to view our trials with great joy! Amen?!
2. Peter wrote: 6 You rejoice in this, even though now for a short time, if necessary, you suffer grief in various trials 7 so that the proven character of your faith—more valuable than gold which, though perishable, is refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:6-7).
a. Our painful trials refine and prove the genuineness of our faith.
3. Paul wrote: We know that affliction produces endurance, 4 endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. 5 This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Rom. 5:3-5).
4. At some point all of us are going to face suffering – it may be persecution because of our faith, or it may be just the suffering that comes from living in a broken and corrupt world.
a. We might experience the physical suffering that comes from cancer, chronic illness, or life’s accidents – like car accidents, or falls.
b. We might experience emotional suffering from childhood trauma, sexual abuse, domestic violence, or mental illness.
c. We might experience relational difficulties that pierce our hearts – betrayal, insults, gossip.
d. Some of the suffering we face can be the result of our own sinful or foolish choices, and some of it comes because of the sinful and foolish choices of others.
5. But whatever the reason or kind of the suffering we experience, God wants us to view it as a trial or a test that can produce growth in us.
a. We don’t get to choose our struggles, but God has given us the freedom to choose how we respond to them.
b. When “life happens” as they say, it can be very ugly, horrid, and evil stuff may come our way, but when it comes, God is present and ready to help in ways that transcends our ability to understand.
c. God is present to lovingly refine us and provide for us so that we can grow.
6. The Bible says that Jesus was made perfect (or complete) through the things He suffered (Heb. 5:8-9).
a. And so, just like Jesus, we can be made perfect (or complete) through our suffering.
b. The fires of suffering can refine us or destroy us depending on how we rely on God.
c. Our daily habits of spiritual discipline can prepare us for the suffering and help carry us through the suffering, and that’s one of the values of spiritual training.
7. If we cooperate with God, then God can use our suffering to build our perseverance, shape our character, and increase our hope.
a. A goldsmith uses heat under a smelting pot to bring the impurities to the top so they can be skimmed off, leaving only pure gold.
b. In the same way, God uses suffering to bring out the impurities of our lives so they can be removed.
c. God uses suffering to dethrone our idols, show us our true selves, and teach us how to trust God more.
d. Character that is sanctified by the Spirit through suffering becomes progressively more stable and is therefore able to focus more attentively on the things of God.
L. Many of us want to be more physical healthy and fit, and maybe it is one of our new year’s goals but then we realize that it will require a change in eating habits and exercise – no pain, no gain!
a. And the same is true spiritually – we like the idea of growing spiritually, but then we realize that it will require a healthy spiritual diet, and a rigorous spiritual routine, including suffering.
b. We might excitedly pray: “Lord, help me to grow!” but we don’t realize that the only way that God can help us to grow is to bring us through training and tests and trials.
M. But in the end, it is all for the good, and the most important thing is that we don’t give up.
1. There’s a great promise in Galatians 6:7-9: 7 Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a person sows he will also reap, 8 because the one who sows to his flesh will reap destruction from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit. 9 Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up.
2. If we keep trying to cooperate with the Holy Spirit, then we will be pleasing to our God.
3. No one bears the mature fruit of the Spirit in a day or a week, rather it’s the task of a lifetime, it’s an ongoing growth process.
4. It will take time, but it will happen, because the Spirit will help make it happen, if we don’t give up.
N. Remember, we can’t do the Christian life in our own strength and ability – we don’t have the ability to follow Jesus, be changed by Jesus, and join in the mission of Jesus – we need the Holy Spirit to be able to do these things.
1. The gospel is good news because it tells us that none of us are good enough or strong enough to do what Jesus asks of us.
2. But God promises to give us the strength and ability that we need to please Him through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.
O. But all of us have to start at the same place – we have to first believe, repent and be baptized into Christ, and when we do we are born again and receive the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
1. We would love to help everyone to begin their journey as a disciple of Jesus.
2. And we are here to help all of us to be faithful in our commitment to Jesus as we depend on the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.
3. Please let us ministers and elders know if you need help to follow Jesus or help to be empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Resources:
The Disciple Maker’s Handbook, Bobby Harrington & Josh Patrick, Zondervan, 2017.
In Step with the Spirit, Sermon by Tommy South
